ELECTRICAL STEERING GEAR SYSTEM

INTRODUCTION
The aim of this project is to demonstrate the operation of an electrical steering gear system fitted onboard a ship. It is basically to develop a contrasting idea about the maneuvering process in a vessel. Electrical steering gear system proposed here works on the principle of Ward Leonard system. It consists of a bridge control for normal operation and an emergency steering gear system for emergency operation. The supply to the rudder motor is varied by the bridge rheostat. The motor, through a rack and pinion arrangement, moves the tiller arm and thus the rudder is turned. The other side of the tiller arm moves a link, which is connected to the slider of the ruder rheostat and stops the motor when the required rudder angle is achieved.

ABSTRACT
Presented within is the synopsis of the development, design, manufacture, and analysis of an electrical steering gear system. This system was developed for maneuvering of sea going vessels with a less complicated design and operational construction. It uses electric current to provide sufficient torque to the rudder for it to rotate. The objective of this project is to design and manufacture a working model of the electrical steering gear system used onboard a vessel. The system consists of no hydraulic system, but is purely based on the operations of electrical and mechanical systems. Hence its rather simple and flexible in lay out. The flexibility of the system allows it to be easily installed and operated in all conditions as the ship has to sail during various different conditions. The simplicity of its operation also makes it rather user friendly. The smoother operation and simpler installation of the system makes it a better choice in the field. The system will utilize a wheat stone bridge arrangement to generate a disturbance current due to its mechanical imbalance. It also consists of a bidirectional dc motor to provide rotary motion. The motor will be powered by a 12 volt dc source. A rack and pinion arrangement will be used to transfer the motor motion to the rudder motion via a tiller. The entire system will be operated by a hand operated lever. The system will be running a rudder of considerable and compatible weight and dimensions. Also the system will be in contrast with the SOLAS conventions for a steering gear system. The entire project is divided into three basic phases: Conceptual development and a review of existing technology. Design, manufacture and assembly of the steering gear system Testing and analysis

WORKING
The working of the steering gear system will follow the following steps: Movement of operating lever to cause imbalance in the wheat stone bridge arrangement. Picking of imbalance current by an H- bridge. Triggering of motor input power in response to the imbalance current. Motor rotation, driving the gear (pinion). The rotary motion of pinion transformed into linear motion by the rack. The tiller arm driven by the rack. Tiller motion is transferred to the rudder via stock. Required rudder motion achieved. The feedback arm connected to other end of the tiller operates the feedback rheostat. The feedback arm motion balances the wheat stone bridge circuit. The imbalance current disappears and motor stops.

HUNTING GEAR ACTION

The principle governing the function is the Wheatstone bridge. The required feed is given through the lever, which in turn moves the sliding contact on the input rheostat. As the rheostat slides the resistance configuration is unbalanced and due to it a current flows to the motor. Hunting basically means that the angle turned by the rudder will not be exactly same as the desired value, rather it may be either less than or more than the desired value. And the rudder may keep on fluctuating around that value. So, the intention behind providing a Hunting gear arrangement is to bring the rudder at the correct desired position by damping the fluctuations. Let us consider that the desired angle is 10. The turning action and the hunting action proceeds as described below. We give the feed through the steering wheel. The feed tends to move the contacts on the main rheostat and the Wheatstone bridge gets unbalanced. This tends to provide current to the motor and the motor starts running. Let us consider the case when the rudder overshoots i.e. The rudder turns to an angle more than 10. Initially during starting the imbalance is more and correspondingly the current provided to the motor is more which is important for more starting torque. But in due course of operation the current imbalance decreases and the magnitude of current also decreases, which will tend to decrease the torque. If the angle turned is more than 10 then the resistance configuration will get unbalanced and the current will flow in the other direction. Thus the current flow through the motor will be reversed and it will cause the motor to rotate in the opposite direction .The rotation in the opposite direction will bring the rudder back to the exact position.

ELECTRICAL STEERING GEAR SYSTEM: COMPONENTS REQUIRED

Operating lever Support rods Rheostats DC Motor Rack and pinion arrangement Tiller arm model Rudder and stock model Connecting links Bearings Connecting wires H- bridge circuit Transistors Diodes Bread board Power supply (12 volts) Batteries Springs

BI- DIRECTIONAL DC MOTOR

In applications requiring absolute accuracy in the speed control of dc servo motors, theres no substitute for the traditional tachometer-based feedback loop. But for somewhat less demanding situations, adequate accuracy often can be achieved without the complication and expense of a tach. This can be done by taking advantage of the built-in electromechanical constants of the motor itself. For example, the fact that every permanent-magnet dc motor exhibits a stable relationship between rpm and armature back-EMF implies that a reasonable job of constant-speed operation can be accomplished merely by driving the motor from a well-regulated voltage supply. Such a motor is capable of rotating and operating in both the directions of rotation. It requires a power supply of 12- 32 volts and current up to 5 amps. The given motor can provide maximum required torque and also a constant supply of desirable torque. These properties make its use worth in context with the project.

WHEAT STONE BRIDGE ARRANGEMENT

A Wheatstone bridge is an electrical circuit used to measure an unknown electrical resistance by balancing two legs of a bridge circuit, one leg of which includes the unknown component. Its operation is similar to the original potentiometer.

In the figure, is the unknown resistance to be measured; , and are resistors of known resistance and the resistance of is adjustable. If the ratio of the two resistances in the known leg is equal to the ratio of the two in the unknown leg , then the voltage between the two midpoints (B and D) will be zero and no current will flow through the galvanometer . If the bridge is unbalanced, the direction of the current indicates whether is too high or too low. is varied until there is no current through the galvanometer, which then reads zero. Detecting zero current with a galvanometer can be done to extremely high accuracy. Therefore, if , and are known to high precision, then can be measured to high precision. Very small changes in disrupt the balance and are readily detected. At the point of balance, the ratio of

Therefore, Alternatively, if , , and are known, but is not adjustable, the voltage difference across or current flow through the meter can be used to calculate the value of , using Kirchhoff's circuit laws (also known as Kirchhoff's rules). This setup is frequently used in strain gauge and resistance thermometer measurements, as it is usually faster to read a voltage level off a meter than to adjust a resistance to zero the voltage. The Wheatstone bridge illustrates the concept of a difference measurement, which can be extremely accurate. Variations on the Wheatstone bridge can be used to measure capacitance, inductance, impedance and other quantities. In context to the project topic, the wheat stone bridge is being used to generate an imbalance current which will actuate a triggering circuit for the motor to operate.

H- BRIDGE ARRANGEMENT
An H bridge is an electronic circuit that enables a voltage to be applied across a load in either direction. These circuits are often used in robotics and other applications to allow DC motors to run forwards and backwards. H bridges are available as integrated circuits, or can be built from discrete components.

The term H Bridge is derived from the typical graphical representation of such a circuit. An H bridge is built with four switches (solid-state or mechanical). When the switches S1 and S4 (according to the first figure) are closed (and S2 and S3 are open) a positive voltage will be applied across the motor. By opening S1 and S4 switches and closing S2 and S3 switches, this voltage is reversed, allowing reverse operation of the motor. Using the nomenclature above, the switches S1 and S2 should never be closed at the same time, as this would cause a short circuit on the input voltage source. The same applies to the switches S3 and S4. This condition is known as shoot-through. The H-bridge arrangement is generally used to reverse the polarity of the motor, but can also be used to 'brake' the motor, where the motor comes to a sudden stop, as the motor's terminals are shorted, or to let the motor 'free run' to a stop, as the motor is effectively disconnected from the circuit. The following table summarizes operation, with S1-S4 corresponding to the diagram above.

S1 S2 S3 S4

Result

Motor moves right

Motor moves left

Motor free runs

Motor brakes

Motor brakes

Here the H- bridge circuit is being used to respond to the imbalance current that is generated in the diagonal arm of the wheat stone bridge arrangement and to actuate the supply to the motor in response to this current. Further when the imbalance current disappears, this will cause the power supply to the motor to cut off and stop the motor.

RACK AND PINION ARRANGEMENT

A rack and pinion is a type of linear actuator that comprises a pair of gears which convert rotational motion into linear motion. A circular gear called "the pinion" engages teeth on a linear "gear" bar called "the rack"; rotational motion applied to the pinion causes the rack to move, thereby translating the rotational motion of the pinion into the linear motion of the rack. The rack and pinion arrangement is commonly found in the steering mechanism of cars or other wheeled, steered vehicles. This arrangement provides a lesser mechanical advantage than other mechanisms such as recirculating ball, but much less backlash and greater feedback, or steering "feel". In this project we are using a rack and pinion arrangement to transfer motor rotation to the tiller arm via linear motion of the rack which in turn will rotate the attached rudder. This arrangement will also help in the feedback circuit as a similar plane rod is being used as a feedback rod to transfer tiller arm movement from opposite side into the sliding motion of the slider which operates on the feedback rheostat.

TILLER ARM
A tiller or till is a lever attached to a rudder post or rudder stock of a boat that provides leverage for the helmsman to turn the rudder. The tiller is normally used by the helmsman directly pulling or pushing it, but it may also be moved remotely using tiller lines. Rapid or excessive movement of the tiller results in an increase in drag and will result in braking or slowing the boat. In steering a boat, the tiller is always moved in the direction opposite of which the bow of the boat is to move. If the tiller is moved to port side (left), the bow will turn to starboard (right). If the tiller is moved to starboard (right), the bow will turn port (left). But this is not the case always and the tiller movement basically depends on the installation adopted. As the size of boat increases the force needed to control the rudder via a tiller becomes excessive.

RUDDER AND RUDDER STOCK

A rudder is a device used to steer a ship, boat, submarine, hovercraft, aircraft or other conveyance that moves through a medium (generally air or water).A rudder operates by redirecting the fluid past the hull or fuselage, thus imparting a turning or yawing motion to the ship. In basic form, a rudder is a flat plane or sheet of material attached with hinges to the ship's stern, tail or after end. Often rudders are shaped so as to minimize hydrodynamic or aerodynamic drag. On simple watercraft, a tiller -- essentially, a stick or pole acting as a lever armmay be attached to the top of the rudder to allow it to be turned by a helmsman. In larger vessels, cables, pushrods, or hydraulics may be used to link rudders to steering wheels. Generally, a rudder is "part of the steering apparatus of a boat or ship that is fastened outside the hull", that is denoting all different types of oars, paddles and rudders. Rudders are hung on the stern or transom connected to the steering mechanism by a rudder post. The rudder stock acts as the support for the hanging rudder as well as it actually turns the rudder in response to the steering input. It is general a rod which is fitted on the rudder and is fixed in the tiller arm for rudder operation.

TIME AND EXPENSE REQUIRED

The time required for the designing and manufacture of the electrical steering gear system in accordance with the conceptual ideology is approximately 2 months. The money expenses, considering each aspect of the project which includes fabrication, transport, buying of parts, assembling, testing and analysis and corrections if necessary is approximately INR 10000.

ELECTRICAL STEERING GEAR SYSTEM

PROJECT ABSTRACT

KUNJALI MARAKKAR SCHOOL OF MARINE ENGINEERING COCHIN UNIVERSITY OF SCIENCE TECHNOLOGY

BY: GROUP I ADWAITH KRISHNAN ALOK KUMAR AMITH KUMAR S ARJUN SANTOSH SR ASHWANI KUMAR PANDEY